Swiss Chicken-Secret Recipe Club

I have a new friend in Blog Land - but she did not know until today!

I joined the Secret Recipe Club and was secretly assigned

 to choose a recipe from the Plain Chicken.

It was not easy to pick just one recipe from Steph's site - they all seem so tasty!

I did finally settle on this scrumptious chicken dish - saucy and savory!!

~*~

Thank you Amanda of Amanda's Cookin fame - our incredible leader and founder of this club!

Also, the wonderful, Angela, from Big Bear's Wife coordinated our group this month.

These are two great ladies who accomplished a

labor of love to produce one fantastic party!

Swiss Chicken

4 boneless chicken breasts

(slice in 1/2 to make 8 total)

1 stick butter

1/2 c chicken stock

1/4-1/2 c Sherry

Swiss cheese, 10 slices

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 pkg. Texas Toast Seasoned Croutons

oregano - thyme - garlic powder - salt -pepper

Preheat oven to 350.

Place butter in a 9x13" dish and melt in oven.

Coat chicken pieces in butter. Season with spices.

Top each chicken piece with Swiss cheese.

Mix together soup, stock and wine.

Pour sauce over chicken and cover completely.

Top with crushed croutons. 

Use olive oil cooking spray to coat the croutons.

Bake for 35-45 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.

~*~

The sauce is perfect ladled over rice or creamy mashed potatoes.

Simply delicious and my family absolutely loved it!

I modified the recipe a little bit by adding the

wine and spices - but you can find the original recipe HERE.

The addition of Texas Toast Croutons instead of stuffing

was so good - I had never tried these before and now I love them!

I loved visiting Steph @ Plain Chicken - there are so many delectable recipe choices.

I am planning on making several this week and I even purchased the ingredients!

Being a part of the Secret Recipe Club and discovering other blogs is fabulous!

If you would like to join in the fun please visit Amanda's Cookin right away!

Linking to my favorite parties:

 Jam Hands Lark's Country Heart Stone Gable Tuesday Time Out
Hearth & Soul Naptime Creations Tuesday Talent Show
Cast PartyLet's Do Brunch Faith, Grace & Crafts Full Plate Thursday 
Gallery Of Favorites The Charm Of Home Party Mindie Style
Mangoes & ChutneyBake With BizzyLa Bella Vita
Ladybird Lane-Weekend ShowoffStrut Your Stuff

 

Strawberry Crostada

I am featuring one of my favorite summer time desserts again

because the girl's over at Everyday Sisters

are having a party starring Red Recipes!

I just love their blog and I know you will too!

Stop over and visit the sisters - you are in for a treat.

This is so delicious with a show-stopping presentation!

mmmmm.....

Sweet Strawberry Crostada

~*~

1 1/2 lbs. strawberries

2 T sugar, for sprinkling

(or more, to taste)

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 T flour

2 T sugar

1 T vanilla

1 pie crust

 Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Hull and slice strawberries.

Sprinkle with sugar and set aside.

 Mix together cream cheese, flour, sugar & vanilla.

 Line large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place the pie crust on the parchment paper.

 Spread the cream cheese mixture on the pie crust

leaving a one inch border around the edge.

 Pile the strawberries on top of the cream cheese.

Work your way around the pie crust

folding the edges up every one inch or so.

 Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Allow to cool and serve at room temperature or slightly warm.

(Adapted from Buns In My Oven)

I am linking to one of my favorite blog hops:
Sharing Sundays
&
Tuesday Talent Show

Orange ~ Kissed Blueberry Muffins

A sweet blueberry muffin wrapped in sunshine!

These are decadent little gems that you will love...LOVE!

These muffins are full of plump fresh blueberries and

topped with a delicious orange sugary glaze....mmmmm!

Folding fresh blueberries into the sweet batter...

***

My recipe for today is one that I adapted from the Baking Bites Blog.

I added a fresh orange glaze that I know you will enjoy!

Hot muffins out of the oven waiting to be dressed in their glaze! 

Orange-Kissed Blueberry Muffins

~*~

1 egg
2 cups flour

2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/4 c butter, soft

1 cup sugar

1 T fresh orange zest

3/4 c orange juice, freshly squeezed

1 1/2 c blueberries
~*~

Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Cream together the butter and sugar in a separate bowl until light and fluffy.

Beat in the egg and and the orange zest until well blended.

Stir in half of the flour by hand, add the orange juice and then the rest of the flour.

Gently fold by hand until just combined - do not over mix.

Carefully fold in the blueberries - the batter will be thick.

Spoon the batter into prepared muffin tins.

Bake @ 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until a pick inserted comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack and glaze.

Orange-Kissed Glaze

1 c powdered sugar

1 T orange zest

2-3 T freshly squeezed orange juice

Mix until blended and drizzle over muffin tops.

 

Sweet Indulgences  Jam Hands Lark's Country Heart My Meatless Mondays 

Joy The Baker  Sweetology Tuesday Time Out My Sassy Chef Hearth & Soul

Naptime Creations Tuesday Talent Show  Cast Party  Let's Do Brunch 

Faith, Grace & Crafts Full Plate Thursday  Gallery Of Favorites

The Charm Of Home Friday Potluck Party Mindie Style Mangoes & Chutney

Bake With Bizzy La Bella Vita Ladybird Lane-Weekend Showoff

Sweets For A Saturday Strut Your Stuff

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Have you ever come home pondering what to make for supper?  Me too!

I had some boneless chicken breasts in the fridge

and thought about Chicken & Dumplings or maybe a Chicken Pot Pie.

My time was limited and my family was starving ~ so I scoured through

my pantry and came up with this scrumptious soup.

You probably have most of the ingredients on hand and it is very easy to prepare.

I knew I chose the right dish to serve for lunch when my daughter came over

 to my simmering pot and said "That looks delicious and smells so good!"

***I like to present my soup with bowls of topping choices.

 I bake up some crispy tortilla strips and serve with

sour cream, cheddar cheese, cilantro and limes.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

~*~

6 chicken breasts, cooked and diced

I like to simmer my chicken with 2 celery stalks, 1 onion, 3 garlic cloves, 3 carrots and 3 chicken bouillon cubes or roast in the oven drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with kosher salt and pepper.

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 can Mexican diced or stewed tomatoes

2 cans black beans

(drain and rinse)

1 can chili beans

2 cups shoe peg corn

3-4 cups chicken stock

(here is a great time to use my homemade stock)

1 T chili powder

1T cumin

garlic salt to taste

Saute onions in olive oil until translucent.

Add the garlic and continue to saute for 1 minute.

Add tomatoes, broth, beans, corn and spices -

simmer until flavors blend - stir in chicken.

To Serve:

Place tortilla strips in bowl and ladle on soup.

 sprinkle on additional tortillas and toppings of choice.

Enjoy!

~*~

I am linking to the following favorite parties:

Jam Hands Lark's Country Heart Tuesday Time Out My Sassy Chef

Hearth & Soul Naptime Creations Tuesday Talent Show  Cast Party

This Chick Cooks Let's Do Brunch  Faith, Grace & Crafts

Full Plate   Gallery Of Favorites The Charm Of Home  La Bella Vita 

Ladybird Lane-Weekend Showoff Strut Your Stuff

Homemade Chicken Stock

 

The aroma of homemade chicken stock 

simmering away on the stove is absolutely divine! 

This is the basis for so many wonderful and delicious dishes:

soups, stews, casseroles, supper entrees and anything else you can dream up!

I make up large batches and freeze for future dishes.

~*~

Homemade Chicken Stock

1 Whole Roasting Chicken 

(or different chicken pieces)

3 Carrots, sliced in chunks

2 Yellow Onions, sliced in quarters 

(onion can remain unpeeled)

4 Stalks Celery, slice in chunks 

(with leaves)

1 Whole Garlic Bulb, cut in 1/2 

(you may peel and separate into cloves)

1 Punch Fresh Parsley

Fresh Thyme

2 Bay Leaves

2 T Kosher Salt

1 T Cracked Black Pepper

Place all ingredients in a large dutch oven. 

Fill pot with water and bring to a boil. 

Reduce heat and simmer broth for 3-4 hours. 

Strain broth and discard all vegetables. 

Remove chicken and debone. 

Place stock in refrigerator over night to chill. 

Remove fat on top of stock.

 Simmering Stock.....the possibilities are endless!

~*~

I am linking to the following parties:
 LARK'S COUNTRY HEART-STONE GABLE JAM HANDS
HEARTH & SOUL BLOG HOP -NAPTIME CREATIONS-TIME OUT TUESDAY
LET'S DO BRUNCH-THIS CHICK COOKS-CAST PARTY WEDNESDAY
MIZ HELEN'S COUNTRY COTTAGE-FAITHGRACE&CRAFTS-MY SASSY CHEF-VINTAGE RECIPE THRUSDAY
CHARM OF HOME-E'KAT'S KITCHEN-GALLERY OF FAVORITES

EVERYDAY SISTERS-PARTY MINDIE STYLE-LA BELLA VITA-MANGOES & CHUTNEY

STRUT YOUR STUFF-LADY BIRD LANE

Home and Pantry
Sassy Chef Recipes and Reviews
The Twerp and I

Picture Clusters

Kat in the Kitchen

Pinoy Kitchenette

My Bric-a-Brac

Pecan Pie Muffins

I found this delicious recipe on
the Pioneer Woman's site.

These melt in your mouth while being chewy!

Pecan Pie Muffins
~*~

1 c light brown sugar

1/2 c flour

1 c chopped pecans

2/3 c soft butter

2 whole eggs

~*~

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease muffin pan - or use paper liners.

Mix the the brown sugar, flour and pecans.

In a separate bowl, beat the butter and eggs until smooth.

Stir in dry ingredients until just combined.

Spoon the batter 2/3 full into prepared muffin cups.

Bake 20-25 minutes. Cool on wire racks.
****************


I am linking to my favorite parties: HERE!
Fresh Food Friday-Lady Bird Lane-Six Sister's Stuff-Gallery of Favorites
The Charm Of Home-Sassy Chef-Party Mindie Style-Bake With Bizzy
 



Butterscotch Gems

  Melt-In-Your-Mouth-Goodness

soft...buttery...rich
delicious after school treat
 perfect to pack in lunches
a tasty treat and lovely snack anytime!



Butterscotch Gems

~*~

In a large bowl sift together dry ingredients:

1-3/4 cups flour

1 t salt

3/4 t baking soda

Combine in mixer until light and fluffy:

3/4 cup shortening

1-1/4 cups light brown sugar

2 T milk

1 T vanilla

1 egg

**************

Add dry ingredients into wet until just blended.

Add 2 cups butterscotch chips.

Drop by round 1" T onto a cookie sheet.

Bake one batch at a time @ 375 for 10 minutes.

Do not over bake.

Makes 3 dozen delectable cookies.

I love when the cookie jar is full!

Baked with love fresh from the oven...

~*~
I am linking to the following parties:

Sweet Indulgences-Lark's Country Heart-My Meatless Mondays-Bizzy B Bakes

Joy Of Desserts-Jam Hands-Faith, Grace & Crafts-Vintage Recipe Thursday
Sweetology-Naptime Creations